Scottish Executive

Airports

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to continue its discussions with Her Majesty's Government and other interested parties in regard to the proposed railway station at Edinburgh Airport, should its commercial viability be established.

Lewis Macdonald: The Executive intends to continue its discussions with all stakeholders about a proposed rail link to Edinburgh Airport.

Autism

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many 16- to 18-year-olds currently have a diagnosis of (a) autism and (b) Asperger’s Syndrome, broken down by health board area.

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people over 35 have a diagnosis of (a) autism and (b) Asperger’s Syndrome, broken down by (i) age, (ii) gender and (iii) health board area.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

Bridges

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Amey Highways Ltd or BEAR Scotland Ltd have gritted any metal bridge structures with salt based products since 1 April 2001, and, if so, which bridges, on what date, who authorised such gritting, and why permission was given on each occasion.

Lewis Macdonald: Glycol is normally applied instead of salt as a precautionary treatment when ice or light snow is expected on two bridges with metal decks; the A898 Erskine Bridge and A9 Kessock Bridge.

  Salt has been used on one occasion since 1 April 2001, when the Kessock Bridge was treated in this way on 8 November. Glycol had been applied to the bridge during the previous evening but further snow and the freezing conditions rendered this treatment ineffective. When this exceptional situation occurs at Kessock Bridge the procedure is to apply a light spread of salt to provide safe movement for traffic. This action was undertaken on the instruction of BEAR Scotland Ltd’s winter maintenance duty manager and is in line with the practice that was followed before 1 April 2001.

Culture

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what financial support it has given in the current financial year to both the Piping Centre and the College of Piping in Glasgow.

Dr Elaine Murray: A grant of £300,000 has been given to the Piping Centre. No grant has been made to the College of Piping.

Culture

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much (a) Fife Council and (b) Clackmannanshire Council have spent on arts and cultural services, expressed in monetary and per capita terms, in each of the last four years.

Dr Elaine Murray: Figures for arts and culture are not identified separately in reports to the Executive. The figures reported for the sport, arts and culture sector are as follows:

  





Clackmannanshire 
  




Fife 
  












1998-99 
  

1999-2000 
  

2000-01 
  

2001-02 
  

1998-99 
  

1999-2000 
  

2000-01 
  

2001-02 
  



£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  



Libraries 
  

960 
  

896 
  

965 
  

1,059 
  

5,354 
  

5,162 
  

5,592 
  

5,763 
  



Museums & Galleries 
  

47 
  

45 
  

52 
  

65 
  

867 
  

863 
  

934 
  

967 
  



Countryside Amenities including Country Parks and grants 
  for cultural organisations 
  

1,315 
  

1,303 
  

1,348 
  

1,371 
  

2,139 
  

1,445 
  

1,558 
  

1,802 
  



Sport 
  

586 
  

604 
  

 549 
  

543 
  

4,439 
  

5,874 
  

 6,421 
  

 6,364 
  



Remainder of Leisure and Recreation 
  

808 
  

696 
  

852 
  

859 
  

13,891 
  

16,005 
  

15,948 
  

 16,156 
  



  Notes: Libraries, Museums & Galleries 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 are final outturn figures.

  All 2001-02 figures are budget estimates.

  All other figures are provisional outturn.

Culture

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it provides to local authorities to support and develop their arts and cultural activities.

Dr Elaine Murray: The Executive continues to provide unprecedented levels of investment to local government. The allocation of these funds to different activities is, of course, a matter for the individual authorities. However, the Scottish Arts Council has a range of programmes and schemes which provide support to local authorities to support and develop their arts and cultural activities. These include joint funding of various arts development officers and Education LINKS officers with local authorities. In addition to this the Executive has set up a joint working group with COSLA which will produce good practice guidelines for local authorities on the implementation of the National Cultural Strategy.

Data Protection Act 1998

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what legal advice it has received on whether Section 5.4 of its draft Guidance On The Circumstances In Which Parents May Choose To Educate Their Children At Home is in breach of the Data Protection Act 1998.

Nicol Stephen: Scottish Executive solicitors were consulted during the preparation of the draft guidance on the circumstances in which parents may choose to educate their children at home, which has been issued for consultation until 29 March 2002. In fulfilling their duties, authorities must comply with the requirements of data protection legislation. The terms of paragraph 5.4 are not intended to suggest otherwise, and will be given further consideration before final guidance is issued.

Education

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many pupils at schools in Edinburgh took an examination in a foreign language and how many, and what percentage, passed in each year since 1997, broken down by language.

Nicol Stephen: The following table shows the number of pupils in publicly funded schools in the City of Edinburgh education authority who (a) sat and (b) passed a foreign language examination:

  


Subject Name 
  

1997 
  

1998 
  

1999 
  

2000 
  



Number Sat 
  

Number Passed 
  

Number Sat 
  

Number Passed 
  

Number Sat 
  

Number Passed 
  

Number Sat 
  

Number Passed 
  



Standard Grade French 
  

1,789 
  

1,665 
93% 
  

1,917 
  

1,781 93% 
  

1,834 
  

1,750 
95% 
  

2,054 
  

1,924
94% 
  



Standard Grade 
Gaelic (learners) 
  

5 
  

5
100% 
  







* 
  

* 
  

8 
  

8
100% 
  



Standard Grade Gaidhlig 
  

* 
  

* 
  







* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  



Standard Grade German 
  

1,248 
  

1,153 92% 
  

1,125 
  

1,049 93% 
  

1,104 
  

1,050
95% 
  

964 
  

905
94% 
  



Standard Grade Italian 
  

99 
  

97
98% 
  

102 
  

98
96% 
  

98 
  

98
100% 
  

154 
  

143
93% 
  



Standard Grade Russian 
  

5 
  

5
100% 
  







7 
  

7
100% 
  

* 
  

* 
  



Standard Grade Spanish 
  

148 
  

146
99% 
  

107 
  

105
98% 
  

86 
  

85
99% 
  

117 
  

115
98% 
  



Standard Grade Urdu 
  







* 
  

* 
  

8 
  

8
100% 
  

16 
  

16
100% 
  



Intermediate 1 French 
  



















* 
  

* 
  



Intermediate 1 Italian 
  



















8 
  

8
100% 
  



Intermediate 1 Spanish 
  



















10 
  

9
90% 
  



Intermediate 2 French 
  



















16 
  

13
81% 
  



Intermediate 2 German 
  



















13 
  

10
77% 
  



Intermediate 2 Italian 
  



















* 
  

* 
  



Intermediate 2 Spanish 
  



















9 
  

9
100% 
  



Higher French 
  

205 
  

164
80% 
  

195 
  

173
89% 
  

172 
  

139
81% 
  

176 
  

152
86% 
  



Higher Gaelic (Learners) 
  







* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  



Higher Gaidhlig 
  



















* 
  

* 
  



Higher German 
  

158 
  

125
79% 
  

127 
  

105
83% 
  

113 
  

92
81% 
  

150 
  

139
93% 
  



Higher Italian 
  

16 
  

14
88% 
  

18 
  

9
50% 
  

15 
  

12
80% 
  

26 
  

26
100% 
  



Higher Russian 
  

6 
  

5
83% 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

5 
  

5
100% 
  



Higher Spanish 
  

43 
  

35
81% 
  

62 
  

49
79% 
  

55 
  

46
84% 
  

40 
  

36
90% 
  



Sixth Year Studies French 
  

17 
  

17
100% 
  

14 
  

14
100% 
  

20 
  

20
100% 
  

14 
  

14
100% 
  



Sixth Year Studies German 
  

17 
  

17
100% 
  

8 
  

8
100% 
  

9 
  

9
100% 
  

5 
  

5
100% 
  



Sixth Year Studies Italian 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  







* 
  

* 
  



Sixth Year Studies Russian 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  

* 
  















Sixth Year Studies Spanish 
  

15 
  

15
100% 
  

8 
  

8
100% 
  

16 
  

16
100% 
  

15 
  

15
100% 
  



  Notes:

  * Data has been suppressed to preserve the anonymity of candidates.

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in meeting objective 3 of A Science Strategy for Scotland of ensuring that enough people study science to a standard which will enable the future needs of the country to be met.

Ms Wendy Alexander: For details of the progress being made on the Science Strategy commitments on school science education, I refer the member to the answer given to question S1O-4498 on 24 January 2002.

  On post-school education, progress is being made on the commitments in the Science Strategy in consultation with the various bodies involved and as they fit with wider developments. Progress includes: issuing guidance to the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council on the importance of encouraging entrepreneurship skills; widening the availability of entrepreneurship courses to all Scottish universities through the Scottish Institute for Enterprise; and participating in the UK-led Roberts Review of the Supply of Scientists and Engineers, the final report of which will be published later this year. The Review of Education for Work and Enterprise, which is currently under way, will also consider the role that financial education and the science and technology curriculum can play in fostering enterprising and entrepreneurial attitudes and activities in later life.

  The Scottish Science Advisory Committee, which is currently being established, will provide advice on the extent to which we are achieving our cross-cutting objectives for science.

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time equivalent laboratory technicians are currently in post in schools.

Nicol Stephen: The information requested is not held centrally.

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent by schools on accommodation, materials and equipment in (a) science subjects, (b) business studies suites and (c) computing suites in each year since 1997, broken down by local authority area.

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent by schools on teaching materials and equipment for (a) chemistry, (b) biology and (c) physics in each year since 1997, broken down by local authority area.

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria were used to determine how much was spent by schools on (a) chemistry, (b) biology and (c) physics and from which budgets the funds for such spending were allocated in each year since 1997.

Nicol Stephen: The information requested is not collected by the Scottish Executive. Individual education authorities and schools are responsible for the detailed decisions on the allocation of resources for particular subject areas in schools.

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time equivalent vacancies there were for teachers in (a) chemistry, (b) biology and (c) physics in each year since 1997, broken down by local authority area.

Nicol Stephen: Teacher vacancies are largely a matter for education authorities (EAs). The requested information on vacancies for each year since 1997 is not held centrally. On the basis of advice from 31 out of 32 EAs, there are the following numbers of full-time equivalent vacancies in EA secondary schools at 10 September 2001:

  


Chemistry 
  

7.7 
  



Biology 
  

13 
  



Physics 
  

8.5 
  



Total 
  

29.2

Education

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to its news release SE 4012/2001 of 19 September 2001, (a) how much of the £101.9 million end-year flexibility award for education has been allocated, (b) to whom or to what organisations or projects it has been allocated and (c) whether local authorities may apply for funding from the award and, if so, (i) how they should do so and (ii) whether there are or have been any time limits on making such applications.

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to its news release SE 4012/2001 of 19 September 2001, whether it will allocate any of the £101.9 million end-year flexibility award for education to the Scottish Borders Council education budget, in light of any further cuts to that budget being considered by the council.

Nicol Stephen: All of this funding has now been allocated. A significant proportion of EYF funding comprised a managed underspend to be set against the additional costs to local authorities arising from the teachers’ pay and conditions settlement. Substantial additional resources have also been allocated to schools for use directly at school level. Funding has also been made available to authorities for increasing the number of three-year-olds in pre-school education, provision of Pupil Support Bases and ICT associated initiatives. Further EYF funding has been allocated to Social Justice projects aimed at improving the education of looked after children.

  Where resources have been allocated through specific grant mechanisms requiring application by education authorities, this process has been completed and all local authorities have received their appropriate allocation.

Education

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many children left school in the West Lothian area without attaining a standard grade in (a) English, (b) Mathematics and (c) English and Mathematics in each academic year since 1996.

Nicol Stephen: The following table shows the number and percentage of pupils that left publicly funded schools in the West Lothian education authority in 1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99, without attaining a standard grade in (a) English, (b) Mathematics and (c) English and Mathematics:

  


Year 
  

Total number of leavers 
  

Percentage not attaining Standard Grade 
  Mathematics 
  

Percentage not attaining Standard Grade 
  English 
  

Percentage not attaining Standard Grade 
  Mathematics and English 
  



1996-97 
  

1,861 
  

190 (10%) 
  

200 (11%) 
  

239 (13%) 
  



1997-98 
  

1,912 
  

143 (7%) 
  

137 (7%) 
  

180 (9%) 
  



1998-99 
  

1,939 
  

118 (6%) 
  

106 (5%) 
  

150 (8%) 
  



  Note: Data relating to 1999-2000 is not yet available.

Electricity

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to Ofgem about the removal of price controls on electricity and pre-payment tariffs.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with Ofgem on a wide range of issues, including the regulation of electricity supply prices.

Employment

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Department of Trade and Industry played any role in action taken to alleviate the effects of recent redundancies in West Lothian and, if so, what role it played.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Executive has put in place the Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) initiative which is a strategic national framework bringing together the relevant local agencies to alleviate redundancy situations. The local PACE teams have provided support to those affected by recent redundancies in West Lothian tailored to individual needs. This includes advice on job searching, core skills training, skills transfer programmes and financial advice.

  Through InUK, a joint DTI/FCO organisation, the Department of Trade and Industry has assisted in the marketing of the Bathgate site of Motorola.

Employment

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is giving, or intends to give, to any companies or other organisations that were suppliers of goods and services to the Motorola plant in Bathgate and/or the NEC plant in Livingston and have been or will be adversely affected by their closure.

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what analysis of any impact on the supply chain of the closures of the Motorola plant in Bathgate and the NEC plant in Livingston was undertaken by the Partnership Action for Continuing Employment team in West Lothian.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Following the closure of the Motorola plant in Bathgate, the Motorola Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) team undertook a review of the likely impact of the closure on the supply base companies. The review concluded that while a few companies had been directly affected, the majority of the 300 suppliers had felt little or no significant impact. This PACE team is currently undertaking a similar review on the supply chain for NEC.

  Scottish Enterprise wrote to all the supplier companies outlining the assistance that may be available to those companies affected. That could include business advice, assistance and financial support. This package is still available to companies as required.

Employment

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what further special support it plans to offer West Lothian in light of the recent large scale redundancies and labour market statistics showing an increase in the claimant count level in the area.

Ms Wendy Alexander: As I announced to Parliament in December, the Executive is making £6 million available to help implement the West Lothian Action Plan for economic development. This fulfils the commitment to provide up to £10 million following the Motorola closure last year.

  In addition, a wide range of specific support measures has been implemented to assist those affected by redundancies in the area. The Motorola Taskforce has already assisted in the redeployment of approximately three-quarters of former employees. Similarly, NEC employees will have access to a number of forms of assistance such as an on-site response team, counselling and high quality training.

  The unemployment rate in West Lothian remains below the Scottish average.

Employment

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring it has undertaken of the effectiveness of the Partnership Action for Continuing Employment contingency plans.

Ms Wendy Alexander: In March-April 2001 the Executive undertook a series of seminars to review the first year of operation of the Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) framework.

  In October 2001 the report Partnership Action for Continuing Employment 2001 Review was published, outlining the key findings from the review. The document included an action plan for the further improvement and development of PACE at a strategic and local level. That included recommendations in respect of early warnings and forward planning.

  We are also commissioning research on how other countries deal with large-scale redundancies in order to identify other examples of best practice.

European Union

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on devolved matters of the outcome of the Laeken European Council of December 2001 and, in particular, the Laeken Declaration on the future of the European Union.

Mr Jim Wallace: As a matter of course, policy divisions within the Scottish Executive assess the implications for devolved matters of the outcomes of all EU summits. The Executive very much welcomes the declaration on the Future of Europe which maps out the process for the next stage of the debate. Building a more efficient EU which focuses on the issues concerning ordinary people and starts to close the gap between EU Institutions and European citizens is of great importance to Scotland and that is why the Scottish Executive will continue to contribute to this debate.

Ferry Services

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the cost of the new vessel on the Barra-Eriskay ferry route will be met under borrowing consent or funded by the Executive.

Lewis Macdonald: The two new vessels to be ordered by Caledonian MacBrayne, at an estimated cost of £12.6 million, will be financed under loan arrangements with the Scottish Executive.

Flood Prevention

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-20074 by Allan Wilson on 7 January 2002, what recent applications have been received from Renfrewshire Council concerning the implementation of flood prevention measures.

Allan Wilson: No further approaches have been made by Renfrewshire Council to the Scottish Executive in connection with flood prevention measures, since the answer given to question S1W-20074 on 7 January 2002.

  However, I am fully aware of the concerns regarding flood risk in Renfrewshire and the Council’s considerable efforts and plans to reduce flood risk in its area.

Fuel Poverty

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on its fuel poverty strategy of any price differential of electricity supplied to (a) domestic consumers and (b) non-domestic consumers compared with the rest of the UK.

Iain Gray: No such assessment has been made, but I have asked the Fuel Poverty Working Group to examine the matter as part of the consideration of the Fuel Poverty Statement that Scottish ministers are required to make under section 88 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001.

Health

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representation (a) Scottish Enterprise, (b) Highlands and Islands Enterprise and (c) its Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Department have on the Pharmaceutical Liaison Group.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Pharmaceutical Liaison Group is an informal forum designed to allow discussion of matters of shared interest to the Health Department, NHSScotland and pharmaceutical interests. As such, none of the organisations mentioned in the question have representation on that group. However, a member of Scottish Enterprise did attend one meeting to discuss an item of relevance.

Homelessness

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the final report of the Homelessness Task Force will be published.

Iain Gray: The Homelessness Task Force is currently finalising its report and recommendations, which I expect to be published before the end of February.

Judicial Appointments

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-21023 by Mr Jim Wallace on 8 January 2002, what discussions have taken place with the appropriate legal authorities concerning the appointment of suitably qualified women lawyers to the positions of (a) sheriff and (b) Judge of the Supreme Court.

Mr Jim Wallace: None. It will be for the independent Judicial Appointments Board to consider ways of encouraging more applications for judicial appointments from women and other under-represented groups. The board membership is being recruited now and I expect it to be operational shortly.

Justice

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to exempt officials of the Parliament from jury duty.

Mr Jim Wallace: We have no plans to make the Parliament’s officials ineligible for, or give them an automatic right of excusal from, jury service. Like all those cited for jury service, officials of the Parliament may apply to the clerk of court to be excused and the clerk may excuse them if there is good reason to do so. The judge may also excuse a juror.

Legislation

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many amendments to a bill it has undertaken to lodge at Stage 3 of the legislative process during Stages 1 and 2 of the process and how many amendments it has actually lodged at Stage 3 since 1999.

Patricia Ferguson: The Information requested is not held centrally. The Parliament’s website contains marshalled lists of amendments selected at Stage 3 of a bill and the Official Report records discussion of the issues.

MMR Vaccine

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the latest figures are for the uptake of the MMR vaccine, broken down by health board area.

Malcolm Chisholm: Figures published by the Common Services Agency (CSA) confirm that the percentage uptake of MMR for children aged up to 24 months at quarter ended 30 September 2001 was 86.9%. This was broken down by NHS board as follows:

  


NHS Board area 
  

MMR % uptake in quarter to September 2001 
  



Argyll and Clyde 
  

86.0 
  



Ayrshire and Arran 
  

84.6 
  



Borders 
  

84.8 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

92.6 
  



Fife 
  

85.3 
  



Forth Valley 
  

88.0 
  



Grampian 
  

90.6 
  



Greater Glasgow 
  

86.0 
  



Highland 
  

73.4 
  



Lanarkshire 
  

86.8 
  



Lothian 
  

88.7 
  



Orkney 
  

90.4 
  



Shetland 
  

90.0 
  



Tayside 
  

90.5 
  



Western Isles 
  

66.1 
  



Scotland 
  

86.9 
  



  These figures are published on ISD (Information and Statistics Division of CSA) online at:

  www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd/child_health/ch_immunisation/ch_UptakeRates.htm.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the consultation paper on mental health services for deaf and deafblind people by its Principal Medical Officer will be made available to the Parliament.

Hugh Henry: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-21433 on 29 January 2002.

NHS Waiting Lists

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any waiting lists have been closed, including any which have been subsequently re-opened, in any hospital in the Lanarkshire Health Board area in 2001.

Malcolm Chisholm: Lanarkshire Primary Care Trust was one of several NHS Trusts which revealed restrictions to outpatient lists in a very small number of highly-specialist areas. Where a GP considers that referral to the Clinical and Counselling Psychology Service in Lanarkshire is the most appropriate for that individual, that patient should be added to the waiting list. It is unacceptable to refuse to accept a referral and to close waiting lists.

National Parks

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it anticipates issuing a final consultation document on the boundaries of the proposed Cairngorms National Park, how long any proposed consultation will last, and when it expects to reach a final decision on the matter.

Allan Wilson: We have still to complete our consideration of the Scottish Natural Heritage consultation report on proposals for a Cairngorms National Park. It is our intention, however, to initiate consultation on a draft Designation Order for the Cairngorms National Park in the near future. Consultation on the draft Order will run for a minimum 12-week period.

  The detailed time frame for reaching a final decision on the Cairngorms National Park depends on the issues raised during that consultation. The Programme for Government undertakes to establish the first two National Parks in Scotland by early 2003.

National Parks

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will report on the outcome of the consultation on the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park draft designation order.

Allan Wilson: We hope to lay a draft Designation Order for Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, and the associated Elections Order, before the Scottish Parliament, in the very near future. As required by section 6(6) of the National Parks (Scotland) Act the Designation Order will be accompanied by a statement summarising the Executive’s consultation, responses received and changes to the order, if any.

Nuclear Waste

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what sites are currently in use, or have been identified for future use, as repositories for nuclear waste and what the source of the nuclear waste was, or will be, for each site.

Ross Finnie: The latest information on the amount, location and source of radioactive waste presently stored in the UK and predicted to arise in future is contained on the CD-ROM 1998 United Kingdom Radioactive Waste Inventory , a copy of which is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 8385). The Inventory does not include information on past disposal of waste. Dounreay has operated disposal facilities for low and intermediate level waste which has arisen as a result of past activity on the site. The intermediate level waste disposal facility, the so-called "Dounreay shaft", has not been used since 1977. Details of the waste to be recovered from it are included in the Inventory as it is proposed that it will be removed from the shaft.

  The consultation document Managing Radioactive Waste Safely began the process to develop a long-term policy for the management of solid radioactive waste in the UK. Future stages of this process will consider options for the storage and disposal of radioactive waste. This is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 16146).

Nuclear Waste

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-16250 by Rhona Brankin on 27 June 2001, whether any sites for the repository of nuclear waste material from decommissioned nuclear submarines have now been selected.

Ross Finnie: No sites have been selected. I understand that in its announcement on the publication of the final report of the Project ISOLUS Front End Consultation, the Ministry of Defence stated it will not be until industry comes forward with proposals that potential sites will begin to emerge.

Nurses

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin & Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact that any current shortage of nurses may have on the delivery of (a) health care in general, (b) care for elderly people, (c) services for elderly people provided by long-term care facilities and (d) home health care services for elderly people.

Malcolm Chisholm: No such assessment has been made. The current vacancy rate for all qualified nurses remains low at 0.5% for vacancies over three months.

  Facing the Future, the report of the 19 November 2001 Convention on Recruitment and Retention in Nursing and Midwifery was published in November 2001 along with an action plan to address long standing and emerging recruitment and retention issues at all grades and across all specialties within the nursing professions.

  I am personally chairing the Implementation Group which had its first meeting on 22 January 2002 and expect progress reports from the group members at the next meeting on 4 March 2002.

Public Sector Ombudsman

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-18467 by Angus MacKay on 8 October 2001, whether it is now able to say whether the responses to its consultation paper A Modern Complaints System: Consultation Paper for Public Sector Ombudsmen in Scotland favoured the inclusion of enterprise external adjudicators in a "one stop shop", if so, whether it intends to create such posts and, if so, (a) when the adjudicators will be appointed; (b) where they will be located; (c) what their salary scale will be; (d) to whom they will be responsible, and (e) when and how often they will report the details of their findings.

Peter Peacock: As Mr MacKay explained in the answer given to question S1W-18467 on 8 October 2001, the consultation paper proposed that the External Complaints Adjudicators will be wound up and that complaints relating to Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise will instead be dealt with by the new Scottish Public Sector Ombudsman. The responses to the consultation paper supported this proposal. Our conclusions on this matter will be made clear when legislation is brought forward.

Public Transport

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-21018 by Lewis Macdonald on 3 January 2002, what the eligibility criteria are for the Public Transport Fund.

Lewis Macdonald: The eligibility criteria for the Public Transport Fund are set out in circular DD3/2001 inviting bids. Copies are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 18647).

Rail Network

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers it has to initiate rail network schemes in the event of no initiative being taken by the relevant rail authorities.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive currently has no direct powers to initiate rail network schemes in the event of no initiative being taken by the relevant rail authorities. Work is in hand on an order under section 30 of the Scotland Act to transfer to the Parliament legislative competence over the promotion and construction of railways in Scotland.

Rail Network

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to facilitate the reopening of Laurencekirk station.

Lewis Macdonald: The proposal to reopen Laurencekirk Station is a local transport matter, and as such is the responsibility of the relevant local transport authorities in partnership with the rail industry to take forward.

  Railway infrastructure projects may qualify for financial assistance from either the Scottish Executive’s Public Transport Fund (PTF) or Integrated Transport Fund (ITF). Bids under the PTF would have to satisfy eligibility criteria and compete with other bids, and those under the ITF would have to be considered by the Scottish Executive as being regionally or nationally strategic.

Rape

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases of rape were reported in 2000; how many of these led to charges being laid against the alleged perpetrators; how many led to convictions, and what the average sentence was.

Mr Jim Wallace: There were 562 crimes of rape recorded by the police in 2000. Fifty persons were proceeded against in 2000 where rape was the main offence involved, of which 27 had a charge proved. The average sentence, where a custodial sentence was given, was six and a half years.

Road Signs

Kay Ullrich (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action should be taken by a local authority once it is established that a settlement sign on a trunk road wrongly identifies the settlement.

Lewis Macdonald: Should a local authority decide that a settlement sign on a trunk road wrongly identifies a settlement, it should submit proposals to amend the sign to the Scottish Executive, as trunk road authority. The Scottish Executive’s role is to ensure that all signs erected within the trunk road boundary comply with current regulations and guidelines and have no adverse effect on road safety.

Road Signs

Kay Ullrich (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-17935 by Mr Jim Wallace on 1 October 2001, whether, given that the area known as Seamill now forms part of the contiguous urban settlement of West Kilbride, North Ayrshire Council should ensure that the sign on the A78 at the boundary of the settlement reads "West Kilbride".

Lewis Macdonald: This is a matter for North Ayrshire Council to consider.

Roads

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what grant aided expenditure allocation was made to each local authority for (a) roads maintenance and (b) winter roads maintenance in each financial year since 1998-99.

Lewis Macdonald: The following table shows what grant-aided expenditure was made to each local authority for roads and winter roads maintenance in each financial year since 1998-99.

  Grant Aided Expenditure

  Roads Maintenance and Winter Maintenance

  





Road
Maint. 
  

Winter
Maint. 
  

Road
Maint. 
  

Winter
Maint. 
  

Road
Maint. 
  

Winter
Maint. 
  

Road
Maint. 
  

Winter
Maint. 
  



1998-99 
  

1999-2000 
  

2000-01 
  

2001-02 
  



£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  

£000 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

 3,786 
  

 938 
  

 3,795 
  

 904 
  

 3,940 
  

 969 
  

 3,909 
  

 936 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

10,396 
  

 4,054 
  

10,376 
  

 3,850 
  

 10,267 
  

 3,995 
  

 9,967 
  

 4,039 
  



Angus 
  

 3,495 
  

 1,370 
  

 3,484 
  

 1,302 
  

 3,486 
  

 1,356 
  

 3,420 
  

 1,378 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

 5,041 
  

 1,844 
  

 5,025 
  

 1,749 
  

 4,899 
  

 1,804 
  

 4,751 
  

 1,866 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

 992 
  

 278 
  

 994 
  

 267 
  

 1,036 
  

 285 
  

 1,049 
  

 282 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

 7,489 
  

 3,000 
  

 7,460 
  

 2,844 
  

 7,268 
  

 2,933 
  

 6,964 
  

 2,990 
  



Dundee City 
  

 2,086 
  

 563 
  

 2,087 
  

 544 
  

 2,166 
  

 581 
  

 2,177 
  

 568 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

 2,712 
  

 924 
  

 2,696 
  

 881 
  

 2,758 
  

 930 
  

 2,741 
  

 934 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

 2,092 
  

 548 
  

 2,087 
  

 525 
  

 2,196 
  

 565 
  

 2,236 
  

 556 
  



East Lothian 
  

 2,169 
  

 764 
  

 2,178 
  

 725 
  

 2,216 
  

 763 
  

 2,204 
  

 760 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

 1,641 
  

 438 
  

 1,655 
  

 422 
  

 1,775 
  

 464 
  

 1,836 
  

 463 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

 7,890 
  

 1,823 
  

 7,772 
  

 1,739 
  

 8,169 
  

 1,877 
  

 8,610 
  

 1,822 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

 2,687 
  

 948 
  

 2,686 
  

 898 
  

 2,572 
  

 922 
  

 2,425 
  

 942 
  



Falkirk 
  

 2,994 
  

 760 
  

 2,701 
  

 730 
  

 2,856 
  

 786 
  

 3,015 
  

 871 
  



Fife 
  

 7,333 
  

 2,241 
  

 7,309 
  

 2,150 
  

 7,568 
  

 2,287 
  

 7,679 
  

 2,287 
  



Glasgow City 
  

 7,220 
  

 1,921 
  

 7,318 
  

 1,864 
  

 7,809 
  

 2,024 
  

 8,317 
  

 1,990 
  



Highland 
  

 12,754 
  

 5,134 
  

12,742 
  

 4,867 
  

 12,374 
  

 5,017 
  

 11,863 
  

 5,119 
  



Inverclyde 
  

 1,192 
  

 329 
  

 1,183 
  

 313 
  

 1,255 
  

 347 
  

 1,281 
  

 346 
  



Midlothian 
  

 1,833 
  

 560 
  

 1,836 
  

 538 
  

 1,900 
  

 572 
  

 1,927 
  

 583 
  



Moray 
  

 3,212 
  

 1,147 
  

 3,200 
  

 1,090 
  

 3,175 
  

 1,132 
  

 3,085 
  

 1,143 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

 2,712 
  

 895 
  

 2,710 
  

 855 
  

 2,800 
  

 911 
  

 2,796 
  

 911 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

 4,874 
  

 1,416 
  

 4,963 
  

 1,372 
  

 5,247 
  

 1,478 
  

 5,294 
  

 1,459 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

 1,742 
  

 707 
  

 1,721 
  

 672 
  

 1,643 
  

 689 
  

 1,555 
  

 705 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

 5,140 
  

 1,969 
  

 5,020 
  

 1,885 
  

 5,020 
  

 1,963 
  

 4,897 
  

 1,981 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

 2,907 
  

 759 
  

 2,936 
  

 736 
  

 3,116 
  

 805 
  

 3,155 
  

 792 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

 5,478 
  

 2,237 
  

 5,339 
  

 2,121 
  

 5,221 
  

 2,192 
  

 5,038 
  

 2,230 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

 1,769 
  

 773 
  

 1,755 
  

 731 
  

 1,678 
  

 750 
  

 1,580 
  

 765 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

 2,869 
  

 960 
  

 2,840 
  

 911 
  

 2,884 
  

 957 
  

 2,856 
  

 961 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

 6,057 
  

 1,936 
  

 6,144 
  

 1,882 
  

 6,356 
  

 1,997 
  

 6,355 
  

 1,992 
  



Stirling 
  

 3,591 
  

 967 
  

 4,136 
  

 963 
  

 4,343 
  

 1,031 
  

 4,347 
  

 1,021 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

 1,356 
  

 371 
  

 1,360 
  

 357 
  

 1,438 
  

 385 
  

 1,462 
  

 378 
  



West Lothian 
  

 3,337 
  

 935 
  

 3,431 
  

 917 
  

 3,615 
  

 981 
  

 3,716 
  

 979 
  



Total 
  

130,844 
  

 43,509 
  

130,939 
  

 41,605 
  

 133,046 
  

 43,744 
  

 132,507 
  

 44,049

Roads

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action the Performance Audit Group has taken in respect of the trunk roads maintenance contract for the Highland Council area (a) in each of the last three months and (b) over the Christmas and New Year period.

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Performance Audit Group last made a report to it in respect of the trunk roads maintenance contract for the Highland Council area.

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has requested a report from the Performance Audit Group in respect of the trunk roads maintenance contract for the Highland Council area in (a) the last three months, (b) over the Christmas and New Year period; what dates any such requests were made, and what response it received.

Lewis Macdonald: The Performance Audit Group (PAG) carries out auditing and monitoring of the activities of the Operating Company, BEAR Scotland. The auditing and reporting is not carried out on a local authority boundary basis. A report, prepared by PAG, covering the first year of operation of the trunk road maintenance contracts will be published in summer 2002.

  A report on winter maintenance over the Christmas and New Year period has been submitted by PAG to the Scottish Executive in response to a request from the Executive on 3 January 2002. This report indicated that BEAR had undertaken its winter maintenance activities satisfactorily.

  PAG has provided the Scottish Executive with numerous routine audit reports and specific reports which confirm BEAR is generally carrying out road maintenance satisfactorily.

Roads

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many representations it has received on the adequacy of the gritting programme for trunk roads in the Highlands Council area between 20 December 2001 and 7 January 2002.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive received seven representations concerning the adequacy of the gritting programme for trunk roads in the Highland area between 20 December 2001 and 7 January 2002.

Roads

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received in support of an investigation into the winter roads maintenance performance of Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen Councils and BEAR Scotland Ltd and what plans it has for such an investigation.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive has asked the Performance Audit Group (PAG) to carry out a comprehensive audit of BEAR’s winter maintenance activities in the North East of Scotland over the festive period following the period of severe winter weather which affected the area. PAG is employed by the Executive to monitor the performance of the trunk road Operating Companies and provide advice.

  The Executive has received representations from several MSPs in respect of BEAR’s winter roads maintenance operations. No representations have been received in respect of the winter performance of Aberdeenshire or Aberdeen Councils, on local roads for which, of course, they are responsible.

Roads

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to improve the trunk road network in West Lothian.

Lewis Macdonald: We are committed to implementing the decisions that flow from the Central Scotland Transport Corridor Studies, which includes the A8/M8 corridor.

Rural Development

Alex Johnstone (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the North and West Grampian Rural Labour Scheme has been a success and whether it intends to make grants available to other organisations such as local machinery rings.

Allan Wilson: The North and West Grampian Rural Labour Scheme is currently in receipt of funding from the Rural Challenge Fund (RCF). While we understand that the project is proceeding well, we will not be in a position to assess whether it has met the objectives set until it has completed its funding period, which will be at the end of the 2002-03 financial year.

  The purpose of the Rural Challenge Fund is to provide funding to not-for-profit organisations that are taking forward projects to support people who live and work in rural communities. For example, under the RCF a machinery ring co-operative would be eligible to apply for funding to establish a project that helps local people to take advantage of local employment opportunities. The department provides grant aid to the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society Ltd. (SAOS) which in turn provides advice and support to those machinery rings which are members of their organisation. In addition Lantra, the land based National Training Organisation, is currently in negotiations with SAOS with a view to organising a joint event to raise the profile of machinery rings, and encourage and promote co-operation with farmers.

Scottish Executive Publications

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the full costs were of publication, printing and distribution of its January 2002 report A survey of local authority provision for arts and culture , including fees paid to consultants Bonnar Keenlyside.

Dr Elaine Murray: The full costs of the publication were £16,182.

Social Economy

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish its review of the social economy.

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what conclusions were reached following its review of the social economy.

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what actions will be taken to implement any recommendations arising from the review of the social economy.

Iain Gray: The Social Economy Review has been conducted by Mr Stephen Maxwell, on secondment to the Executive for this purpose from the Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations. Mr Maxwell is currently finalising his report which will be published once his work is complete. Once we have seen and studied the final version of the report and its conclusions, my colleagues and I, in consultation with interested parties, will wish to determine what actions are required to encourage the further development of the social economy in Scotland.

Voluntary Sector

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the next phase of the voluntary sector funding review will be and when it will commence.

Iain Gray: The current review of funding for the voluntary sector is looking at the Executive’s own grant-making procedures, with a view to developing a co-ordinated Executive funding strategy for the voluntary sector.

  The next stage will be a wider, strategic funding review. As well as looking at the wider issues identified in the direct funding consultation paper, it will look at how the Executive’s indirect funding meets the needs of the sector and whether it is possible for all the indirect funders to work together to ensure that they are operating in a way that meets their own needs and those of the sector.

  We expect the wider review to commence in the summer.

Voluntary Sector

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has consulted COSLA, the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and charitable trusts in considering the content of the next phase of the voluntary sector funding review.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive has consulted with COSLA, the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and a number of charitable trusts in considering the content of the next phase of the voluntary sector funding review.

Voluntary Sector

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what issues have been identified for consideration in the next phase of the voluntary sector funding review.

Iain Gray: The review of the Scottish Executive’s direct funding of the voluntary sector invited consultation respondents to suggest topics for a wider strategic review. The responses received supported the issues identified in the consultation paper, namely:

  any gaps in coverage of Scottish Executive support for the voluntary sector, for example at the intermediate level;

  indirect funding, especially how it is prioritised, allocated and accounted for;

  the development of systems to provide/promote loans, trading, earned income and asset transfer as a supplement to providing grant aid;

  issues arising out of relationships between Scottish, UK and international voluntary organisations and the Executive; and

  the assistance the sector might need in developing manageable "exit strategies" for when funding is coming to an end.

  No further issues were identified.

Voluntary Sector

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the level of direct grants from the Scottish Office to the voluntary sector was in 1998-99.

Iain Gray: The level of direct grants from the Scottish Office to the voluntary sector in 1998-99 was around £23 million.

Water Charges

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it last met each of the water authorities to discuss charitable reliefs and what the outcome was of any such discussions.

Ross Finnie: The Executive announced a scheme to exempt certain premises from water and sewerage charges on 15 January 2002. In the period leading up to that announcement, the Executive discussed charitable reliefs with the water authorities on a number of separate occasions.

Water Supply

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many houses in (a) South Lanarkshire and (b) the Clydesdale constituency receive their water supply through lead pipes.

Ross Finnie: There are no lead pipes in the distribution network for public water supplies. Service connections to individual houses were typically made using lead pipe until the early 1960s. The use of lead pipe for plumbing services within houses declined during the 1950s as better materials became available. There are no detailed records of lead in the Scottish housing stock.

  The new Drinking Water Directive sets new tighter standards for lead in drinking water from the beginning of 2004. In preparation for the introduction of the new standard, the water authorities are conducting surveys to reveal the prevalence of lead pipes.

Water Supply

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to replace the remaining lead piping which distributes water supplies in Clydesdale.

Ross Finnie: There are a number of measures planned to deal with lead water supply pipes throughout Scotland. These were published in my Quality and Standards paper (August 2001) (Parliament’s Reference Centre, Bib. number 15676) and The Water Supply (Water Quality)(Scotland) Regulations 2001.

  In summary these measures include:

  Water treatment to reduce the uptake of lead.

  Opportunistic renewal of any lead service connection pipes belonging to the water authority found during mains repair or renewal.

  Notification and advice to householders about how to reduce their exposure to lead e.g. by flushing.

  Advice to house owners on the measures they can take e.g. replace the pipes.

  I shall be consulting shortly on proposed regulations to deal with drinking water quality in public buildings such as schools, hospitals and restaurants. This will further address the issue of lead piping.

Youth Crime

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many offences were committed by eight- to 12-year-olds, what the breakdown was of the offences involved in each case, and how many of these offences were referred to a court, all in each of the last 10 years, broken down by each category of offence.

Mr Jim Wallace: The available information is given in the following table for the ages from eight to 12 inclusive. Data for 2001 is not yet available. Information on the types of offences committed by children referred to the Reporter is not collected centrally.

  No. of offences referred to the reporter for children aged eight to 12 in Scotland, 1991-2000/20011

  


1991 
  

1992 
  

1993 
  

1994 
  

1995-96 
  

1996-97 
  

1997-98 
  

1998-99 
  

1999-2000 
  

2000-012




8,429 
  

7,797 
  

7,097 
  

7,759 
  

8,103 
  

7,342 
  

8,531 
  

10,381 
  

10,297 
  

8,581 
  



  Notes:

  1. Data collected from 1995-96 onwards is on a financial year basis. The data prior to 1995 refers to calendar years.

  2. Provisional.

  Children aged eight to 12 proceeded against in Scottish courts, 1991-2000

  


1991 
  

1992 
  

1993 
  

1994 
  

1995 
  

1996 
  

1997 
  

1998 
  

1999 
  

2000 
  



9 
  

3 
  

5 
  

2 
  

1 
  

6 
  

5 
  

5 
  

2 
  

3 
  



  Children aged eight to 12 proceeded against in Scottish courts by main crime or offence group, 1991-2000

  


Main crime or offence 
  

No of children proceeded against 
  



Non-sexual crimes of violence 
  

 8 
  



Crimes of indecency 
  

 - 
  



Crimes of dishonesty 
  

11 
  



Fire-raising, vandalism etc 
  

 5 
  



Other crime 
  

 3 
  



Miscellaneous offences 
  

 7 
  



Motor vehicle offences 
  

 7 
  



Total 
  

41

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Parliament Contracts

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer,  further to his answer to question S1W-21305 on 15 January 2002, whether poor performance in previous contracts is one of the grounds for exclusion of potential tenderers from the tendering process for Parliament contracts.

Sir David Steel: A potential tenderer’s ability to meet the particular requirements of a contract is a key factor in the supplier selection procedure. Each contract opportunity is considered on its own merits and, where a potential tenderer’s poor performance on previous contracts is relevant to the particular requirements being tendered, it would be taken into consideration.